18 November 2021

"Say hi to Don Ho!" — looking back on The Sopranos

18 November 2021

"Say hi to Don Ho!" — looking back on The Sopranos

Curtains for Tony?

I've just finished watching The Sopranos for the seventh time. It's insane how this show stands up to repeated viewings, where you notice new foreshadowing every time. Sadly, some unintentional foreshadowings about James Gandolfini's weight, diet, and even dying of a heart attack (as warned by Christopher Moltisanti) came true. I'd go as far as saying I enjoyed it more this time around than ever before.

Here are some musings:

  • The Beatles are mentioned a hell of a lot. I count nine times. The final mention is when Junior is watching a quiz show in the mental care facility when one of the possible answers is 'Ringo Starr'.
  • Let's say Adriana went to Christopher and Tony as soon as the FBI pulled her in. I wonder if they still would've clipped her? I think so, as the Feds would've found a way to grind her down if she refused to cooperate.
  • They are all brilliant, of course, but Edie Falco is a phenomenal actress. Especially in the scenes when Tony's in a coma. The obvious one is the Tony vs. Carmella argument when she declares her love for Furio in Whitecaps. Yet there's an extraordinary row between the couple in Chasing It after Carmella refused to put a dead-cert bet on. I'm surprised she hasn't been in more big films.
  • I think David Chase would've kept Nancy Marchand in the show until the end if she had not passed. I expect she would've testified against her son.
  • If Furio had shown his face again, Tony would've killed him. Still, Tony had no objective evidence he felt the same way about Carm — bar him disappearing. Carmella pretty much wrote his death sentence when she told Tony she'd been dreaming and fantasising about him.
  • It's interesting how soldiers and Tony's bodyguards popped into the DiMeo crime family and the series without any real backstory: Carlo Gervasi, Walden Belfiore, Dante "Buddha" Greco and Perry Annunziata. An air of mystery surrounds them, becoming some of Tony's closest aides. Where did they come from, and how could Tony trust them not to be rats?
  • I feel Silvio and Christopher were the two people Tony trusted the most. He told them everything but kept certain things from his captains and soldiers. Tony simply had to kill Christopher. His drug habit was too much of a liability.
  • Vito was one of Tony's top earners — possibly his highest. He told Dr Melfi he was "focused" and "ambitious". Tony would've kept him around had Phil not whacked him. Tony would've relocated him. He had a new outlook on life after surviving his uncle's shooting. Tony didn't even seem bothered that Vito was gay.
  • My top five episodes: Commendatori; The Knight in White Satin Armor; Pine Barrens; The Weight; Made in America.

The Sopranos is undoubtedly a work of genius, and I can't wait to watch it again.

Copyright © 2021 J W Emery Ltd. All rights reserved.

© 2022 All Rights Reserved
Design and Develop by MR GREAT